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Arsenal have banned star striker Robin van Persie from talking to the media while on international duty at Euro 2012 with the Netherlands, as the club's hierarchy grow increasingly anxious about the player's next move.

The 28 year-old travelled back to his homeland on Thursday to meet up with his teammates ahead of this summer's major championships training camp, and journalists were reportedly told that Van Persie was the only player that they would not be gaining access to.

A Netherlands spokesman confirmed this in a statement which read: "We made a deal with Arsenal and he won't talk to the press."

Van Persie met with manager Arsene Wenger and the club's chief executive Ivan Gazidis on Wednesday at the manager's home, as they attempted to convince the striker of their plans for the future and the key role that he had in them.

However, after a seven-year trophy drought and with the player turning 29 in August, he is thought to be keeping his options open regarding a move away from the club. He only has 12 months remaining on his contract and has so far refused to talk about a new deal, let alone sign one.

The question is will we replace him? You make it sound as though replacing players is far far easier than it is as though there are all these strikers out there hidden under rocks of the same or better quality as Robin. And that is just naive,

Of course he can be replaced,> But can he be replaced without the club losing a lot given our financial policies? Who exactly have we really replaced since their departures in the period? follwing 2005?

Not simply bought another player to fill their spot in the sqaud or in the first eleven but who have we bought who has equalled or eclipsed the player they were replacing on the pitch straight away? I think a case can be made for Bacary Sagna and that's it really .

So I think the notion that he can just be replaced like any other player as easily as you suggest is just wrong.That sounds like Peter Hill-Wood really It's not impossible to replace him, but it's as close to impossible as it gets for Arsenal with our financial policies to do so.

Merlion96In consolation, another five panicky buys on AUgust 31..and we are 3rd again.

With all due respect, Merl, F.UCK THAT @#$%&.

WHy not?

Taht is Wenger's style as he is out hunting for bargains at Euro2012..then a long drawn out affair to engotiate for best price - like Juan Mata - and then after a winless start of teh season with WIlshere still recovering, Poldolski struggling to adapt, a petulant Walcott still negotiating for 85,000 pw..SOng as creative playmaker....

You see any silver lining except hping Wenger will repeat himself on AUg-31?

Our board are anxious over his contract situation? After letting it run down to just a year left I'm shocked by that. Certainly didn't see this coming.

And lol at the talks breaking down when Arsene and that other c.unt owner tried convincing him of their 'plans' and the role he plays. I just can't imagine why RVP didn't sign immediately on the dotted line when they informed him everything would be ok now Bendtner and Denilson were back from their loans.

Albert Einstein once said: "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Maybe wenger has convinced RVP to avoid the media so that he will not accidentally reveal the GRAND PLAN that they have all worked out together, including the special, secret players that Arsenal will be adding!!!!!

karsene16Players have always been replaced at this club but the new dilemma is are big players leaving too quick to sustain.

Because its a part of the business plan and Arseene Wenger has said this and no one said a thing to dispute this pr punish for saying it. Why? Because we haven't demanded to know if this is true or why we have to do this.

My guess is if we had started raising hell then Arsene Wenger might have been thrown under the bus to appease though then we would knoiw for sure shortly there after - those of us capable of not deifying our Board at least of who really was setting the policy and why.

And BTW they haven't refuted or had him retract claims he made about this possibly being our policy at least on spending through 2031, which would put us halfway to where s***s are now and that's only if we are able to stay in the Champions League the entire time really. If we miss that at some point who knows how much longer this could go on.

RockstaarI'm just thinking of the impact our so called big players really have
Cesc left..we're higher in the league
Nasri left..we're higher in the league

RVP has had one fit season with us and a great season it was but we're only a place higher...no trophies, no titles nothing

I believe the style of football Wenger plays, that as long as a player can score he would thrive here

a player of Suarez capabilities would get the golden boot easily in our system

I agree to an extent. For me it's not really about weakening us so much as strengtening others which is so unwise.

Robin's loss would be felt as a confidence thing. losing ANOTHER star player etc. That must hurt the players, it certainly hurts fans.

Not to mention, he's needed for branding and buasiness reasons as well.

On the pitch, we'd miss his coolness from the penno spot, his corners and freekicks as well as his goals.

for me he's a potentially bigger loss than Henry, nasri or cesc. Henry was a better player but we were in a better position then. Considerably.

Should we sell Robin to City, well then I'm not sure how I'd react, I would be so damn angry with the club. It would represent another reason for me to further distance myself from a game which once dominated my life.

Rock & Solo, over the last 5 to 6 years there has been one fundemental component missing from all Wenger sides. Our players are groomed for pass and move footbal (Passie, passie, passie) what we dont have is the spirit for a fight, a will to win. One could even say that the players are not afraid to fail under Wenger because he dont loose it with them and still get paid next week "Rain or Shine'. With that sort of temperament, you could even say we lack the passion and conviction to win.

Merlion96People, get real.
Wenger will never change and he is untouchable as Kroenke loves him for generating profits every season in player trading:
summer 2011 - £70-mil for Cesc, Nasri, CLichy, etc
summer 2012 - £50-mil sales for Van Persie and Walcott
summer 2013 - £50-mil for Song, Vermaelen, etc
summer 2014 - £70-mil for Koscielny, WIlshere, etc

See, 5-Year Business Plan as presented by CEO of Arsenal FC, Arsene Wenger, to Kroenke and Gazidis.

So you're saying this wasn't the case when it was the Board of English Gentlemen and he was selling or letting leave for free Vieira, Edu Pires, Reyes, Campbell, Henry, Ljungberg,Cole, Flamini, Gilberto, Toure, Adebayor, all of which had the same net effect on profitability as you suggest the sales you rightly suggest may be coming? You're saying it was different then?

Seems to me the only real difference was who Arsene Wenger was reporting to. Amd maybe if we had seen that for what iet was instead of trying to protect the image of our gallant Club Custtodians we wouldn't be where we are now.

Indeed this press gag on VanPersie is the verysd first real sign at all of the yanks doing anything any differently than the right proper gentlemen who predeced them. Because they haven't done anything else any differently than our Beloved custodians had since 2005 at all before this.

Peter storey, you could say that about last season's team. But our current team has alot of fighters: wilshere, sagna, arteta, vermaelen, rvp, santos, aoc, kos, mertesacker, jekinson, coquelin, frimpong, and szczesny. Song has increase his fight too, making it 15 fighters in the squad plus gibbs and rosicky who are always commited (17).

"A club is a union between players, supporters and directors". - Wenger.
Arsene wenger has done an absolutely masterful job within the constraints he has... Every single year, he has outperformed our spending every single year he has been manager. It is extraordinary. -Gazides.

There is a lot of hope on rvp staying with everyone but the reality is, he's been injured for most of his time here, he's had a good season and now it's ade, flamini and nasri all over again.
WE HAVE ALREADY REPLACED HIM. Podolski.
Even if he does stay who's to say his glass ankle wont @#$%& up again in pre season, wenger uses the long season then euro's excuse, and r.v.p is out for '2 weeks' which turns into 7 months? It's happened before. 35 million? no one will give us 35 million for any of our players.
40m for cesc from barca? didn't happen.
if rvp goes we'll accept 25-30 million.

RFT is right they wont want it out before ST sales,how can Wenger build when we keep losing our talismen.Problem for me is he tries to replace them with budget buys or kids.We have been very lucky this season third was gifted us in reality I dont think it will happen again.

- until Wenger moves on, they'll always be the also-rans in the major competitions. A club in elite purgatory. Always good enough to make it to the big race, never fast or smart enough to push over the finish line in first place. That's all about the manager. Until he changes, Arsenal fans will continue to celebrate glorious failure.

A boycott is a thread on here.
The biggest boycott I can think of is WE buy them out, but i'm not getting into that all that again. could the fans all get together with a few fivers buy some shares and go in with usmanov?

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